Voldemort's Brother
by Runaway Scribe
Summary: What if Voldemort had a long-lost twin brother? And what if that twin, James Salazar Riddle, slept with a drunken Bellatrix Lestrange? Our favorite Dark Lord might just get a bit upset.
1. Chapter 1

Bellatrix Lestrange sat at the Underground Tavern's bar, not quite knowing what she was doing, being out at these ungodly hours. She looked around and only saw a wrinkled witch in the corner, muttering to herself, and the bartender cleaning a mess of Dragon's Brew behind the counter. Not many people came here anymore. It was once an elite pureblood hangout but had fallen in social stature shortly after she, along with many other Death Eaters, were sent to Azkaban and dealt with by the Ministry.

A dark, cloaked figure entered the room and seemed to scan the entire place for potential threats before relaxing his guard and approaching the bar. Bellatrix felt dwarfed by this tall form, and as he neared, she could make out bright blue eyes peering at her from within the darkness of his hood. He raised a long-fingered hand to summon the bartender and as he did so, his cloak burst into brilliant, blazing flames, before collapsing gracefully at his feet in a small pile of ashes.

Show-off.

"My, Mr. James, I believed you dead! I haven't seen your face in decades!" the flustered bartender exclaimed.

"I've merely been waiting my friend. If I could have a glass of firewhiskey?"

"Yes, of course sir, please, please, have a seat," the bartender replied, gesturing to a chair a few seats away from Bellatrix.

"Thank you," the dark-haired man said quietly, kicking the pile of ashes out of the way and taking the seat next to Bellatrix instead.

Bellatrix didn't move an inch to greet him as she discreetly evaluated him. James was a very common name amongst purebloods she noted, a name he shared with the Potter brat's blood-traitor father. He had a sharply-angled face and his skin tone had a marble-like, Greek-god statue quality. The man had hair as black as ink that was neatly cut but slightly ruffled.

"Here you are Mr. James," the bartender said placing the man's glass on the bar table, "I'll be in the backroom if you need anything.

"Thank you," James repeated, paying for the drink and tipping heavily.

So he was from a wealthy family as well, thought Bellatrix. It was made even more obvious by his choice in clothing. She began tracing the rim of her glass idly. Bellatrix doubted there was anyone impure of blood that could have gotten in here, especially when it had been in its prime decades ago. She doubted anyone with impurities would ever want to. Bella glanced again to the side as he took a sip of his drink.

The man turned to her, "You know, the firewhiskey here tastes exactly like it did the last time I came here."

And apparently, the last time he'd been here was decades ago. He didn't even look like he could be thirty years old.

The man seemed to be waiting for a reply, "Oh, how rude of me, my name is James," He extended a hand.

Bellatrix hesitated before deciding to shake his hand, "My name is Bellatrix Lestrange."

She waited, perhaps for a look of shock or something similar, but none came. Bellatrix was also wondering if he'd tell her his surname, but that's not what he said next.

"That's a perfectly lovely name, for such a beautiful woman as you."

Bellatrix finished her drink off and stepped down from her seat onto unsteady feet. She didn't really understand this man. He must have been living under a rock, until recently. She started towards the door.

"Wait! Where are you going Bellatrix? The floo is that way," James pointed, concerned.

"I'm not using the floo, I always apparate home." Bellatrix didn't like floos; they were controlled by the Ministry, something that she'd never trust.

"But you'll have to walk through the entire city to get past the new Anti-Apparation wards they've put up. And this isn't exactly the safest town anymore, even for purebloods."

"I think I'll be okay," Bellatrix sneered; this man thought he knew better about her safety than she did.

"Please, let me escort you through, it's no trouble."

Bellatrix didn't even dignify that with a response; she just glared and walked through the doorway. She wasn't some damsel in distress; she could walk herself through the city. She'd come here by herself without incident, and it'd be no different going back. It made no difference that it was darker now. James had come to the Tavern in the middle of the night, hadn't he?

Bellatrix stumbled along towards the outskirts of the town. She must have had more to drink than she originally thought she had. As Bellatrix rounded a corner, she only managed a couple of steps before she tripped over some loose stones in the pavement and went sprawling.

Bellatrix groaned. She looked around and realized that she had shambled all the way into some dead-end alley. She had absolutely no idea where she currently was. The Dark-Lord's most loyal Death-Eater slowly picked herself up, she could probably find her way around this rat's maze if –

"Well who do we have here?" a cold voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Who's there?" Bellatrix demanded in an authorative voice.

She rummaged around in her pockets for her wand but couldn't find it. A high-pitched giggle was the only reply. Panic started to set in. Bellatrix Lestrange had never been caught without her wand before. She'd always had something to fight with, even if she was disarmed in the end.

A man stepped out into the dim light of the street lamp hanging above. Bella's eyes widened. It was an ex-Auror. She had tortured and killed his wife and Greyback had raped and then eaten his daughter. Bellatrix couldn't even remember his name, but she did remember that he had been fired and sent to St. Mungo's after he had suffered a complete mental breakdown. The ex-Auror had escaped from his low-security room months ago and was determined to get revenge against the monsters that had ruined his life.

"You've been a naughty, naughty girl Missy," the man grinned lecherously at her, "you'll need to be punished."

He pulled a knife out of the pockets of his trousers.

"I'm going to try and make you feel a teensy tiny bit of the pain my little girl felt when she was torn into pieces by your nasty old wolf friend. Maybe, I can even get you to feel some remorse! Some remorse for using such foul curses on the love of my life? Hmm?" the psycho kept taking steps towards her.

"Now, I know one way a man can violate a woman of her dignity. Would you like to know how? Because I think you already have a pretty good idea."

Bellatrix was shaking on the cold ground of the alley. She wished she had taken the floo home; anything would have been preferable to this. Despite her fear, she couldn't find the strength to scream, she knew no one could hear her anyway.

"You're such a pretty lady. It's such a shame that it's me that has to cleanse you of your evil ways. Don't worry, you can close your eyes and pretend it's your Master abusing you. Wouldn't you like that?" the man took off his tattered robe and was now fussing with the belt securing his trousers.

"I'm sure at least one of us will enjoy this, you filthy Knockturn Alley whore-"

"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

There was a flash of green light behind the madman before he crashed to the ground in front of Bellatrix.

"Bella! Did he hurt you?" it was James. He ran towards her and knelt beside her.

"I got worried after you left because I saw that you had forgotten your wand, I tried to follow you and when I realized that you had gotten lost I sent out a Tracking charm to locate you."

The woman lying on the unforgiving pavement couldn't even begin to care that someone had placed a Tracking charm on her without her permission. She was just grateful for the warm cloak he wrapped around her. Bella hoped this one wouldn't catch on fire.

"Here, we're close to the Apparation zone. Let's try to make it there."

The petite woman didn't resist as James scooped her up into his arms bridal-style and began walking. She buried her head into the warmth of her private savior and it made time pass much more quickly.

"We're outside the boundary; I'm going to put you down now," James said.

Bella was rather dismayed when her feet were gently placed onto Earth again.

"Okay, do you think you have enough strength to apparate yourself home?" James asked her.

Bellatrix nodded, she could manage it now that she had her wand.

"Great, and do you have someone to take care of you there? I'd feel bad if-"

Bellatrix snatched her wand from him. She was tired of listening to this, she didn't like feeling helpless and that was exactly what this man was making her undergo.

"If you don't mind, I'm going home now, and I think I can take care of myself," Bella announced.

And with that, she turned around and apparated back to Malfoy Manor.

"Wait, you need someone to-" that's all Bella heard as she felt him latch on to her arm, attempting to hold her back.

Bella braced herself for the landing in Malfoy Manor; she had always hated side-along Apparation. The expected hard impact didn't come and instead, she fell on something soft. Bella opened her eyes and realized that she'd landed on James.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to come along with you, I just-" James tried to apologize.

Bella rolled off of him and once again didn't bother to listen to the rest of his sentence; she just began clambering up the stairs to her bedroom. If he wanted to follow, then she couldn't really care less.

"Wait, Bella, is there anyone else in the house?" James started following her.

Bella continued to ignore him and finally got to the door of her room. She pushed it open and collapsed onto her bed. Bella was perfectly content just laying there as he stood over her. He was moving his lips but she couldn't really make out anything of what he was saying.

James, always having problems with his temper, finally exploded at her, "BELLATRIX LESTRANGE! I save you from some insane rapist, give you my cloak, carry you home and return your wand to you and you're just going to IGNORE ME?"

Bella, somewhat offended at that, stood up and glared at him.

"I don't even know your surname, and I've only talked to you for, at most, a total of twenty minutes. You're the one that grabbed on to me while I was apparating!" Bella aimed her wand at him, "What the hell is stopping me from killing you right now?"

With a flick of his hand, James took out his wand and in the same motion, tossed it to the small table beside the bed.

"Go ahead, try and curse me, see where it gets you," James told her, with a voice full of contempt.

His impudence made Bella even angrier and before she could stop herself, she shot a torrent of nonverbal hexes at him. James saw each of them coming and with a wave of his hand, he blocked them from hitting him.

Bella was stunned; this wandless man just nonverbally shielded himself from all of her best hexes. Ones that she'd cast nonverbally with her wand. Even an Auror equipped with a wand would've been caught by surprise.

James chuckled, "Very good, but try to strengthen your Occlumency shields when you cast nonverbally, instead of focusing all of your energy on your spells. Trust me, it's well worth it, and could very well save your life someday."

Bellatrix, still not discouraged, pointed her wand at his heart and was about to try again when he gave another practiced flick of his fingers. Her wand flew out of her hand and landed next to his on the nightstand a little bit too neatly.

"Bella, I don't want to play this game, if you really wanted to kill me, you would have tried once you realized that I had apparated alongside you." James took a couple of steps towards her.

Bella took a couple steps back until the back of her legs hit her bed. James kept getting closer until he stopped, mere centimeters from Bella. She could feel his breath against her skin, and before she could ask herself what she was doing, she was leaning in to taste him.

There was something so deliciously sinful about the way the closed-mouth kiss developed into one involving tongues battling for dominance. Bella began exploring his body as James brought a hand up to cup her cheek as he began more forcefully kissing her back. He used his other hand to feel the soft curves of her body and was soon working her clothing off bit by bit. Bella grew impatient and ripped his shirt off his muscular chest before breaking the kiss to tug down his trousers. Socks and shoes were kicked off and only their undergarments were separating them.

James opted to copy Bella's tactic of clothing-removal to tear something from Bella's chest that vaguely resembled a corset, and could finally enjoy the sight of her breasts. He denied himself the pleasure of touching them to instead focus on finding a way to remove her lace panties. James growled and knocked Bella over onto the bed, before swiftly pulling her last piece of clothing off.

The couple went back to their kissing with renewed vigor. James was now between Bella's legs and his underwear was the only thing that separated them. Bella ran her hands up his arms, reveling in the feel of his lean muscles. She reached his shoulders and then her hands began the journey down his abs. She had never been with a man this powerfully built before; most wizards didn't tend to be very concerned about their physical fitness. But James had an amazing six-pack that she couldn't get enough of.

Finally, Bella's hands reached his waistband and she slipped her fingers underneath it before dragging it down his legs and throwing it aside.

Much better.

Bella slid up his body to reclaim his mouth and moaned in pleasure at the friction.

"James…"

James could only grunt in response, still cupping handfuls of Bella in the most tantalizing way. He lifted his head and found the energy to smirk at the beauty laid beneath him.

"Please... James…"

"Patience, love."

James situated himself more comfortably between her legs. Bella's arms were still wrapped around him as she looked up at him and gave one last pleading whimper. That was all it took to break James's resolve. He thrust into her and they both groaned simultaneously.

Bella whined and wriggled her hips, urging him to move. James pulled away until he was nearly out of her and then thrust again, starting up a rhythm. Their sweat intermingled as they explored each other's bodies in the most intimate way they knew. James brought his thrusting to a furious pace and Bella cried out her delight at this.

He plunged into her once more and Bella screamed as she shuddered around him. Her convulsions made James come deep inside her, flooding her womb.

James finally pulled out of her with an obscene pop and kissed her lightly on the lips.

"G'night Bella..." James mumbled, tired.

"Night James."

He rolled off of her and settled in next to her, completely relaxed. They quietly enjoyed each other's body heat, neither wanting to break the calm.

It was only mere minutes before they both had slipped into a peaceful slumber.

* * *

**And that concludes the first chapter. Let's hope Bellatrix remembers this in the morning. And to clear up any confusion, James is not Harry Potter's father. They just share the same name because I thought it was a fitting name for his character. Thank you, and as always, reviews are very much appreciated.**


	2. Chapter 2

"Mrs. Lestrange, please, Mrs. Lestrange, the families is having breakfast!" a house-elf cried from behind a wooden door.

Bellatrix woke, annoyed at the house-elf for disturbing her slumber. She started to rise from the bed to get dressed when something stopped her cold. A lazy hand, still heavy with sleep, wrapped around her middle, as if to prevent her from leaving.

Bellatrix slowly moved off the bed, carefully placing the arm back on the pillow. She suddenly remembered everything that had happened last night and was filled with a nameless dread. Her mind tried to come up with a plan to fix this situation as she pulled on her robes.

Maybe she should kill the man, but he'd already shown his magical prowess, and the only way she could possibly accomplish that would be to kill him now, as he slept. That's what she had done multiple times to accidental one-night stands.

And yet, Bellatrix was averse to that idea as well. James had magical ability and intelligence to shame her husband, and better looks as well. She couldn't take the risk of altering his mind, as Bellatrix had noticed that he'd had strong Occlumency walls put up earlier and she was sure he'd notice something was off if she tried.

Bellatrix convinced herself that the only reason she hadn't killed him was because she was planning to indoctrinate him into the ranks of her Lord. He would be a very useful ally for the establishment of pureblood supremacy.

Bellatrix leaned over to the night table to grab both of their wands. As she was leaving the room, she took a last glance at the bed to make sure James was still asleep.

As she rounded the corner, Bellatrix kicked the insolent house-elf that had called her. He'd pay for it dearly later. She started down the staircase and decided not to tell her sister about James until she could get her alone. No need for Cissy's nosy husband to get involved.

"How gracious of you to join us, Bellatrix," Lucius said, not looking up from his breakfast.

Bellatrix sneered and took a seat next to her sister and across from her nephew, Draco Malfoy.

"It's no problem, Lucius; you know how much I value our quality time together."

Draco sniggered into his cereal.

"Oh stop it you two," Narcissa chided, "We've a lot to do today. Greyback is due to bring the newly acquired captives in less than half an hour."

Bellatrix rolled her eyes at the werewolf's name. Another imbecile of a man was the last thing she needed to deal with today.

* * *

James woke up in an unfamiliar room with a vaguely pleasant feeling and a drowsy smile playing on his lips. He lazily rolled out of the bed and began the slow process of collecting his clothing, most which had been strewn all over the room. Most of his clothing was intact, but his shirt was torn down the front.

James muttered something to himself about never learning any spells to mend clothing before slinging it his shoulder. He couldn't even remember if he'd been wearing a robe or not. His brain was too busy replaying last night, over and over.

James was turning towards the night-table to grab his wand, when he saw that it wasn't there. He smiled to himself; of course Bella would have taken it. James might have shown off a little too much last night. It didn't really matter for the time being anyway, he could manage magic pretty well without the use of his wand. In fact, he usually tended not to use it at all.

The tall man double-checked himself in the mirror before he left. He ran a hand through his hair, attempting to smooth it out. Yawning, he pretended not to be admiring his six-pack as his muscles naturally flexed. Oh yes, James was not a shy man at all, he didn't think he could be, with his muscular frame and his rock-hard abs. And in his humble opinion, his face, with its flawless skin and bright blue eyes, wasn't too hard on the eyes either.

James grinned as he opened the door. No use being self-conscious he told himself. He was walking with either confidence or arrogance, he couldn't tell which. Perhaps cockiness would be a better term. James chuckled and then slid down the banister. Screw the social norms, he thought to himself, he'd do cartwheels in Hell if he felt like being contrary.

* * *

"I just put the last of the Mudbloods in the dungeons," Fenrir Greyback snarled, "anything else, your Majesty?"

"No, we no longer require your assistance," Bellatrix said, ignoring the sarcasm, "you may leave."

"The Dark Lord said he was coming back to Headquarters," Greyback said, baring his teeth in what was supposed to resemble a smile, "I'd get ready if I were you, he'll be here any moment now…"

Greyback smirked and left, heading towards the Manor's gates to get past the Anti-Apparition Wards that only a select few people were exempt from. Namely, the Malfoy family and the Dark Lord.

Draco gave an ill-concealed whimper that he tried to cover with a cough.

"F-father, he's c-c-coming here n-now?" Draco tried to ask without stuttering too much.

Bellatrix didn't listen to his reply as her mind went into overdrive. She knew that her Lord was more likely to be amused than angry if he found out, but she took pains to avoid ridicule from him. She had no particular interest in being the latest laughing stock of the Death Eaters. Especially since her dirty-blooded niece had gotten pregnant by a werewolf.

As for Bellatrix's husband, she didn't particularly care if he knew she had cheated on him, and she was damn well aware he cheated on her regularly. Both of them had married because of pressure from their families and they were both mutually tolerant of each other, but that was about it.

A loud cracking noise of apparition snapped Bellatrix to reality. She looked around and saw that her sister was trying not to have a panic attack.

He was here.

Bellatrix could here low footsteps grow louder as he neared them, and it seemed like everyone was frozen in their places.

"Have the prisoners been secured?" a cold voice asked from the doorway.

Voldemort slowly approached from the doorway, seemingly gliding towards them, in intimidating black attire.

"Yes of course my Lord," Lucius Malfoy practically simpered.

He was like a bug attracted to light, or power, too stupid to realize that once he got anywhere near it, his wings would get burned off.

"Good," the Dark Lord said, then turned to address the anxious dark-haired woman, "Bellatrix, you will interrogate them later for information regarding the Order's whereabouts."

"Yes, my Lord," Bellatrix replied immediately. She could do this. Maybe James had woken up and left. Maybe he'd gotten past her, without her even noticing. Maybe he forgot about his wand. He was probably never even going to cross her path ever again.

"Good morning, sunshine!" an irritatingly cheerful voice called.

There was James, half-naked and merrily strolling towards her, completely ignoring everyone else in the room, his eyes set on her.

"I hope you slept as well as I did, Bella," he smiled, cupping her cheek with his hand and giving her a short, sweet kiss on the lips.

Right in front of the Dark Lord. The guy that shot pretty green lights of death at people.

Yeah, that's right. Voldemort.

James pulled back when he noticed the overwhelming silence.

"What's wrong?"

He turned around to see what everyone seemed to be staring at and looked straight into eyes he swore he'd seen before on someone else.

"Who are you?"James asked, puzzled.

Those eyes were not supposed to be on that body.

"I AM LORD VOLDEMORT!" the man bellowed with rage.

Everyone else in the room visibly shuddered at the mention of his name. But for James, it seemed like everything had just snapped into focus.

I am Lord Voldemort._ Tom Marvolo Riddle._

_Oh. _James felt stupid for not realizing it earlier.

The Riddle twins were back.


	3. Chapter 3

"Tom! It's me James!" James couldn't help himself; he practically threw himself at his twin brother.

The last thing James expected in response to his open arms was a vicious snarl and getting knocked flat on his back. Lord Voldemort was pointing his wand straight at James's heart, his eyes red with fury.

"Tommy?" James asked in a hurt voice, "what's wrong?"

It seemed to everyone in the room that The Dark Lord looked personally insulted.

"How dare you call me that," Voldemort spat out James, "do you take me for a fool?"

"What do you mean Tom? I've always called you –"

"QUIET! My brother's been dead for years! Now, reveal to me your identity, or your death shall be unimaginably painful and humiliating," the angry Dark Lord threatened.

James began to get angry too; here was his brother that, moments ago, James thought to be dead, and now, without any proof, James was willing to accept that he wasn't an impostor. Even though the only recognizable thing about his brother was his eyes and his temper. And the only thing James had to confirm this hunch was this crazy man claiming his name was Lord Voldemort. The anagram that the wizarding world knew him by even before his first defeat by an infant.

The anagram Tom had discovered over 50 years ago, when they had first found the Chamber of Secrets. The very same name that, nowadays, the wizarding world was afraid to even say aloud.

And here James was, sitting dazed and half-naked on the floor under his brother. James, who had not aged a day in over 15 years, and who's aging process had started slowing long before that. James, who looked exactly like he did the last time Tom saw him, and barely acted any different either.

James was furious with the injustice of it all. He should be accusing this man of being an impostor, not the other way around.

"My identity?" James screamed back at him, still on the floor, "I'm your brother, James Salazar Riddle; you've known me your entire life!"

"LIAR! JAMES WOULD HAVE COME BACK! JAMES WOULD HAVE LOOKED FOR ME! JAMES WOULD HAVE RETURNED AFTER MY REBIRTH!"

"I COULDN'T!" James cried, his voice in danger of cracking, "You know what happened after you made that first horcrux! We _both_ stopped aging as fast. You said it was because we shared a part of our soul. Because we were twins, Tommy, conjoined not by flesh, but by blood and soul."

The Dark Lord was still standing there, and his wand was still pointed at James, but the fury in his eyes was lessening.

James stood up and continued.

"I remember the day you went to the Potter house to kill the infant mentioned in the prophecy. When you were ripped away from your body, I was too. But I had no horcrux to anchor me to the Earth. I was lost in the Land of Death for nearly a decade. I kept trying to escape, but it was impossible without a firmer tie to the mortal world."

Voldemort had lowered his wand a bit and was now staring intently into James's eyes, trying to discern if he was telling the truth or not. James let his Occlumency walls down and started speaking again.

"I was wandering around in the endless darkness for what seemed like centuries. I could hear things sometimes, a child crying, a woman screaming, an old man dying…" James shuddered, "Sometimes I saw people I once knew, they looked scared and lost. I tried calling out to them, but they could never hear me, and everytime I took a step towards them, they just got farther away, no matter how fast I ran.'

"I couldn't do anything Tom, I was so weak, I couldn't do any magic, I couldn't feel practically anything; hunger, pain, fatigue, happiness. I just felt lonely." James paused to take in a shaky breath and then started again, "And then finally, you attached your soul to something strong enough to rip me back into the mortal world from the Land of Death: a human."

Voldemort seemed to remember his first attempt to regain a body. Albania, Pettigrew, Quirrel, the Sorcerer's Stone…

"But when I came back, I felt so different, and my magic was going out of control. I think I woke up in a graveyard, the one next to the old Riddle house. Luckily, my wand was still in my pocket, but before I even touched it, I was hurtling to a completely different destination, somewhere in France, I believe. But I just kept apparating all over the place before I finally got it under control. My magic was much more powerful than before, but I was getting more control over it. I stopped blowing things up, hurting people, accidently killing things… Even now, it's still hard to control when I get angry."

Tom knew all about accidental magic, it had been a struggle for him to conquer it as well. But that was when he was still a child.

"When I finally started functioning again, I recovered the lost Slytherin family wealth. The Slytherin castle, the multiple manors, the numerous bank vaults. I started hearing rumors of You-Know-Who returning and I didn't even dare to hope you were still alive and well. It wasn't the first time the Wizarding world refused to address a wizard or witch by name. I could have never imagined 24 hours ago that I'd ever see you again, but here we are."

The Dark Lord, for the first time in a very long while, hesitated. He wasn't sure anymore whether this man was an impostor anymore. Voldemort had been positive that no one knew about the existence of his brother, but when he saw James, he couldn't convince himself to believe that his twin was still alive. But then again, it was amazing that the Dark Lord was still alive himself.

Tom eyes flashed, and he repeated what he had said to the first grown wizard he had ever met, a long, long time ago.

"Prove it."

James took a step forwards, all doubts of this man being his brother were long gone. He remembered those two words from a day that was forever ingrained into his memory.

"_It's me Tommy, your brother,_" James hissed in Parseltongue, a language that only a handful of people in the entire world knew.

"Jamie?" Voldemort couldn't help but ask, in an almost childish tone.

James nodded. He glanced back at the Malfoys and Bellatrix, who seemed to be having trouble with closing their gaping mouths. The shirtless man hesitated, before trying to do something that he couldn't have just minutes ago. He approached Tom with open arms, and when he didn't see any signs of protest, he embraced his brother in as tight a grip as he could manage.

"I missed you, Tommy," James said, as he finally let go of his brother.

Tom still looked a bit shocked, but he pulled all of his emotions behind the mask he wore every day.

"Tom?" James asked, "Are you okay?"

The Dark Lord seemed to snap out of the trance he was in, and fixed James with a quizzical look, "Yes, I am. Now... care to explain why you're half-naked?"

Bellatrix twitched, and James coughed quietly.

"Uh, well…" James muttered, scratching the back of his neck, "It's a long story."


	4. Chapter 4

_"Uh, well…" James muttered, scratching the back of his neck, "It's a long story."_

The Dark Lord narrowed his eyes and turned to look at Draco. He could be sure that he was succeeding in his Legilimency with him. A brief plundering of his mind revealed that he knew nothing more than Voldemort himself, and seemed to be confused and scared out of his mind.

"James," Voldemort said, in a calm and measured voice, "you're hiding something from me."

"I really don't think you want to hear it, Tommy, it'd probably scar you for life."

"And why is that?"

"Well… judging by your reaction when Mrs. Cole had to explain to us where children came from…"

Voldemort snapped his head to look at Bellatrix's eyes and realized that she was nervous. If his assumptions were correct…

James saw his brother's eyes widen and got worried, hoping that his brother hadn't seen anything too explicit in her mind…

"That's disgusting," Voldemort proclaimed baldly.

James smirked, just to hide his embarrassment, "I tried to warn you."

Bellatrix, meanwhile, was mortified and couldn't even look her Lord in the eyes. Or her sister, for that matter.

There was a moment's pause before Voldemort decided to change the subject

"So, what were you saying about recovering the lost Slytherin wealth?"

"I forgot about that!" James said, "The estates and the bank vaults had been gambled away, but because of the powerful curses and protection spells on them, they could never be claimed by someone not of the Slytherin line. I started tracking them down and they had just been laying in dormancy for centuries. I was successful enough to even regain the castle, which is where I've been staying for the past couple months."

Voldemort was angry that all of those riches had been uselessly gathering dust when he was a poor student attending Hogwarts.

James continued, "You need to come and live with me, of course, since you are one of the rightful heirs of Slytherin. It's lonely in that monstrous house anyway, and it has an army of creepy, frozen house-elves in the basement, near the slave-quarters. I haven't tried to unfreeze them yet, but I've read about the enchantment to preserve animals of a dying race in ice, so I think the reverse charm should be pretty simple. Maybe you could help me with that... unless you don't want to share a castle with me, because there are plenty of other manors that you could have."

The Dark Lord was silent as he considered the proposition. This man, his brother, was the only person he had ever had pleasant feelings towards. Even though they were feelings he'd never admit to. It had been over a decade since he had last seen James, and yet, they had been sharing rooms since they were small children. A prestigious castle would be infinitely better than his current accommodations.

The only issue Tom had was the fact that the Malfoy family and Bellatrix Lestrange had witnessed all of what had just happened. The fact that he had a twin brother had always been kept a secret. The Dark Lord needed to be cold and unfeeling, with absolutely no connection to pathetic human emotions.

"AGH! I can't stand the silence, Tommy," James interrupted, "just get your stuff, you're moving in with me. The castle has plenty of room, and you can have a whole bloody wing to yourself. I'll need to tell you how to get there, it should be easy, since you're of Slytherin decent, you're powerful, and you're a quick learner. But I need to tell you in private."

"Yes… and speaking of privacy…"

Voldemort eyed the Malfoys.

"Well, Tom, I think it's time your Inner Circle knew about me. Not the public, of course, but it'd be ridiculous to obliviate the Malfoys and make me hide whenever the Death Eaters came 'round."

"So it's the Malfoys you're averse to obliviating? Not your girlfriend?" Tom asked mockingly.

"She's not my girlfriend!" James protested, as if Bellatrix wasn't standing right there.

"So what I just saw in her mind wasn't an indication of-"

"No… it was just a one-night stand-type thing," James said, avoiding Bella's eyes, "it didn't mean anything, I was drunk."

"And you were still drunk when you paraded in half-naked and kissed her?"

"I was a bit groggy and hung-over, it's not like I actually like her. I was just… sating my needs."

James scuffed his feet on the ground and started feeling self-conscious about his current state of undress.

"I'm gonna go and make sure the wards don't attack you when you apparate in. I'll meet you back here at sunset, so you have time to get all of your things."

James approached Bellatrix and raised a hand. She half-expected him to hit her, but instead, James slid the hand into the pocket of her robes and pulled his wand out.

"Wouldn't want to forget this," he said, backing away from her quickly, as if afraid he'd do something rash.

James turned to Lucius Malfoy, who was still wearing a dumbstruck, and somewhat awed look on his face.

"You make sure that the wards around this house won't attack _me_ when I apparate back in."

Without anything more to say, James Salazar Riddle turned around and apparated away without a sound.

"I'm surprised he didn't splinch himself," muttered Lucius.

Voldemort seemingly remembering that these people were his subordinates, glared at their now frightened faces.

"You will not speak a word of this to anyone, I shall reveal his existence myself," The Dark Lord ordered.

"And you," he spat at Bellatrix, "have a husband that you just publicly shamed."

The woman turned red. He might as well have called her a whore. Right in front of her sister and her family.

"My lord-" Bellatrix tried to explain, but was cut off when the Dark Lord apparated away as well.

Bella looked at the spot where he had just been standing. She really wished she could bury herself in the ground right about now. It was all her fault for seducing James when he had been drunk. She had no right to do that to the brother of her master. This would ruin the reputation of the Lestranges, and even the Dark Lord himself now knew she was a whore. Not to mention the three people she lived with, standing right next to her, probably about to attack her with criticisms.

And the worst part of it all was that James hadn't even liked her in the first place. He was just using her, and it should have been apparent to her from the beginning. She was an idiot for not keeping her damn legs closed. She should have been like her sister, the perfect model of a pureblood witch, whose marriage wasn't a joke, whom had bore her husband a son. Now Bellatrix was just a disgrace to the Black family line. Almost as much as Sirius Black had been.

"Bella?" Narcissa's concerned voice broke in, "how did you even find that man?"

"I didn't," Bellatrix choked on her words, "he found me, and I didn't even know who he was until just now."

Lucius sneered, "You slept with a man before even knowing his identity first? He could have been a-"

He was cut off by a sharp glare from his wife.

Lucius frowned before continuing in a somewhat quieter tone.

"Trust you to mess this up. We could have had a direct connection to our Lord. The Malfoy bloodline could have been in his good graces again. You can't even seduce a man properly."

"That's not true," snarled Bellatrix, "I could if I tried to."

"Then prove it! Go and-"

"Lucius! Your son!"

Bellatrix was grateful for Narcissa's interruption, even if it was for Draco's sake.

"Mother, I'm seventeen, I think I'd know where children came from by now."

"How pathetic, Lucius. Even your son is more mature than you," Bellatrix said, and walked away towards her room.

"Scarlet woman," Lucius muttered under his breath.

* * *

Bellatrix stormed into her room and slammed the door shut after her.

She'd show them all. Bellatrix envisioned the Dark Lord becoming her brother-in-law. She was a respectable pureblood woman, after all. She knew how to properly seduce a man. It would be remarkably easy for her, and it was appropriate for the Dark Lord's most loyal follower to marry into his family. Rodolphus would have to be taken care of, of course. But if a murder was necessary to her plan, then so be it.

Bellatrix began organizing the things in her room with her wand, making everything neat and tidy again. She found remnants of clothing lying around in pieces, making her blush. Despite the alcohol in her system, she could remember all of what happened last night. To be completely honest, it was probably the best she'd ever had. Even then, it had been ingrained in her since birth that what she had done last night was a sacred thing, and it should be reserved for her husband, and no one else.

After she finished fixing the room up, Bella walked to her closet and tried to decide which one of her dress robes was the most flattering. She'd need to look nice for tonight. The robe would have to be formal enough, however, to be appropriate for a meeting with her Lord. Bellatrix cursed and threw robe after robe onto the floor, rejecting each one in her quest to find the perfect one.

"Damnit!" she swore and sat on the floor petulantly.

Cissy had always been better at this sort of thing. Why was she even trying so hard to impress this man in the first place? Her only purpose was to be a servant of her Lord. And yet, for some reason Bella would probably never understand, she felt a strange compelling to prove herself. And that's exactly what she'd do.

After all, Bellatrix Lestrange had never been one to turn down a challenge.


End file.
